Join PenFed / others ahead of time?

[cyclist]

I'm looking at buying a house in a little over a year, and I'm thinking about establishing relationships with potential lenders. (For what it's worth, my credit scores are reasonable so far: 758 FICO via Discover, 754 EX FICO via Amex application, waiting to find out EQ FICO in the next week or two from DCU.)

I have savings/checking accounts with Alliant and DCU, along with a savings secured loan from Alliant, and I was wondering if it would be a good idea to join any other credit unions / banks and start establishing some sort of history to increase my odds of getting favorable terms when I apply for a mortgage.

I've heard good things about PenFed; would it be advantageous to join now? Or should I just wait until I'm ready to prequalify? Also, is there anyone else in particular I should consider joining ahead of time?

[cyclist]

[bump] Any thoughts? Or am I just over thinking this?

[Disgrunted]

You can join the same day you apply.  Don't join if you don't intend to apply, since they pull credit as a part of MEMBERSHIP.  Thus, to avoid excess inquiries, you want to use the 30-day window and join the same time you are applying.